How it works
From the school run to the claim, in plain English
BroomBroom does two jobs: it records your drives, and it does the sums the tax rules ask for. Here is how both work.
Tracking your drives
Set up once
Install the app, sign in and allow location access so it can see your drives, even when the app is closed. We ask for "always" access on purpose and explain why before the phone asks you.
Just drive
A drive starts when your phone senses you are in a vehicle, and ends after you have stopped for about five minutes. Very short hops are ignored.
Sort your drives
Each drive lands in your inbox. Swipe it into business or personal, or let your saved places and rules do it.
Get your report
Choose the dates, then download a spreadsheet or PDF, or email it to your accountant. Reports are a Pro feature.
Phones can stop apps running in the background to save battery, and some Android makers are stricter than others. The app includes a short guide for your phone. If a drive is missed, you can add it by hand.
HMRC approved mileage rates
The rates BroomBroom uses, by tax year
These are the rates HMRC publishes for business miles in your own vehicle. The tax year runs from 6 April to 5 April.
| Vehicle | Tax year | First 10,000 business miles | Every mile after that |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cars and vans | 2026/27 (from 6 April 2026) | 55p | 25p |
| Cars and vans | 2011/12 to 2025/26 | 45p | 25p |
| Cars and vans | 2027/28 (from 6 April 2027), announced | 55p | 35p |
| Motorbikes | All years shown | 24p | 24p |
| Bicycles | All years shown | 20p | 20p |
The 2026/27 rise. The cars and vans rate for the first 10,000 miles went from 45p to 55p. HMRC applies the rise back to 6 April 2026, so a drive on or after that date is claimed at 55p.
Announced, not yet in force. The 2027/28 figure above is the change the Government announced in the Budget 2026 papers. It will only be used once it takes effect, and BroomBroom will not apply it early.
The rates were last checked against GOV.UK on 9 November 2026. The pages we use are approved mileage rates for employees and simplified expenses for the self-employed. Always check GOV.UK if the amount matters to you.
A worked example
Say you drive 12,000 business miles in your own car in the 2026/27 tax year.
- The first 10,000 miles at 55p is £5,500.
- The remaining 2,000 miles at 25p is £500.
- The total claim is £6,000.
The 10,000 mile line counts all your cars and vans together, across the whole tax year. If one drive carries you over the line, BroomBroom splits it and uses 55p for the part before and 25p for the part after.
A few more rules
- Motorbikes and bicycles have one rate and no 10,000 mile line.
- Electric cars you own use the same rates as petrol and diesel cars. HMRC also publishes a separate advisory rate for electricity, but it only applies to company cars, and BroomBroom does not apply it to a car you own.
- Passengers. An employer can pay up to 5p a mile for each colleague you carry on business. BroomBroom can add this to employee claims. It is off until you turn it on.
- Employee or self-employed. Employees claim approved mileage allowance payments. The self-employed use simplified expenses. Today the rates match, and the setting changes the wording in your reports.
- Your employer pays a different rate? You can set your own rate, and reports show it clearly as a custom rate.
- Only business miles count. Commuting from home to a regular place of work is normally not business mileage. Ask your accountant if you are unsure.
Not tax advice. BroomBroom uses mileage rates published by HMRC and does the arithmetic for you. It is not endorsed or approved by HMRC, and it cannot tell you what you are entitled to claim. Check your records before you submit a claim or a tax return.